While there was plenty of debate about Andy Sutton's hit on Pittsburgh defenceman Jordan Leopold during the Ottawa's 2-1 loss Friday at Mellon Arena, the NHL reviewed the check and isn't going to take any further action.

The 6-foot-6 Ottawa blueliner caught Leopold, a smaller player, with his head down.

"It's a good hit. That's why he's here," Ottawa coach Cory Clouston said on Saturday. "We need him to do more of that. We need more guys to play physical. You never like to see a player hurt.

"When you look at the factors, there were a lot of reasons (Leopold) was in that position. When you look at that play from four or five different angles, there's a lot of reasons why.

"There was backside pressure, you had a player with his head down. Andy is a big man, he is 6-foot-6, and if you have your head down it's going to be a target and it's not going to be easy to avoid that. His arm was as tight as it could to the body as well. His elbow wasn't stuck out. This is playoff hockey. They're going to finish their checks on us. We have to do the same."

The Senators don't expect any payback from the Penguins.

Leopold, who has a history of concussions, is likely lost for the series.

Rugged veteran blueliner Jay McKee, an excellent shot-blocker, will likely take his place in the lineup Sunday.

Bad blood builds up over the course of a playoff series. The hit by Sutton will just take it to another level. Both teams promised to be physical and make each other pay the price. The Senators want to make their presence felt.

"It's the playoffs. It's going to be physical," said Ottawa centre Chris Kelly. "That's the way playoff hockey is: It's physical and it's intense. That's what makes it fun."

Centre Jason Spezza said the physical element is heightened when both teams are trying for the same goal: Advancing to Round 2 and, down the road, trying to win a Stanley Cup.

"When you have two teams, that we feel are both pretty competitive teams, it's going to be physical," said Spezza. "That's the fun part of the playoffs. As the games go on, we knew this wasn't going to be a short series and it's obviously going to take on a physical element. That's way it's going."

The Senators know they have to be physical to win battles for pucks if they're going to create scoring chances and, ultimately, come away with the win.

"Definitely, we want to finish the checks," said Clouston. "We don't want to turn away at any time. We need to be more physical. And that's not just finishing checks. We need to be more physical at their net. We need to be more physical at our net locking out. Just in general, from our last game, we need to be more physical."